Ford Motor Company cuts energy use by 22 percent

“It’s some of the simple things that’s probably the same things your listeners do in their homes in terms of improving efficiencies,” says Thomas Niemann, reporting manager for sustainability at Ford Motor Company, “whether that’s our heating and cooling systems, whether that’s our lighting systems.” Niemann, in a conversation with Kirk Heinze, talks about about the company’s sustainability report that has transformed from a corporate social responsibility report.

“Sustainability is an integral part of Ford Motor Company’s business plan,” says Niemann.

Ford Motor Company has released its 13th annual Sustainability Report titled “Blueprint for Sustainability: Accelerating Ahead” – a voluntary and comprehensive annual account highlighting all things sustainable, Niemann says , from people to products. He says Ford’s success cutting energy use in its vehicle manufacturing process – and its announcement to cut another 25 percent in the next five years – comes as global energy use is being projected to soar 53 percent between 2008 and 2035. Other progress highlighted in the report, he says, includes reduction in waste-to-landfill, water use and CO2 emissions; a summary of company financial health; improvement in vehicle fuel economy; and safety achievements.

Aspects of the sustainability report include the following:

Environmental - Reduction in energy consumption is just one result of Ford’s focus on minimizing the environmental impact of the vehicles it produces and the facilities where they are made.

Sustainable Materials - Ford vehicles continue to be a major focal point of the company’s efforts to reduce environmental impact. For example, the seat fabric in most of Ford’s new or redesigned vehicles must now consist of at least 25 percent post-industrial or post-consumer recycled content.

Societal - Because Ford affects such a broad range of stakeholders – employees, dealers, investors, communities – the Sustainability Report also details some of the ways the company interacted with those parties in 2011.

Safety - Ford also is committed to customers and helping to keep them safe is a priority. That’s why the company works hard to develop and offer an array of advanced safety technologies across its entire vehicle lineup.

“It’s good that I work with people a lot smarter than me that can look to the future and see those trends and make those changes and program those plans,” Niemann says. The company also announced plans to reduce usage another 25 percent on a per-vehicle basis by 2016, he says.

“All these great things we do for our world have to begin first with how we take care of people,” says Niemann, “and I’m very proud of the fact that we have a very robust and rigorous system in place to check, monitor, ensure that we are doing that.”